In this photo provided by the Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton applauds as Gov. Cuomo speaks from the podium at LaGuardia Community College in the Queens borough of New York, Wednesday, April 12, 2017. Clinton joined Cuomo on Wednesday for a ceremonial bill signing of the state's new scholarship for poor and middle-class students. (Darren McGee/Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo via AP) ORG XMIT: NYR102 less

In this photo provided by the Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton applauds as Gov. Cuomo speaks from the podium at LaGuardia Community College in the Queens borough of ... more

Exterior of the Schuyler Building which is the future home of the University at Albany's College of Engineering and Applied Sciences (CEAS) on Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2016 in Albany, N.Y. Originally serving as Albany High School from 1913-1972, the Schuyler Building is located at UAlbany's downtown campus. (Lori Van Buren / Times Union) less

Exterior of the Schuyler Building which is the future home of the University at Albany's College of Engineering and Applied Sciences (CEAS) on Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2016 in Albany, N.Y. Originally serving as Albany ... more

I'm picking through the proverbial Easter basket and offering up these chocolaty tidbits.

I won't claim to be a regular bowler, but count me among those who will be sad to see the old Olympic Lanes in Menands make way for an apartment complex. On a rainy day with kids, bowling alleys are a great and affordable way to have some fun.

Plus, Olympic Lanes is old-school in the best sense of the term.

Is there a chance Jerry Jennings will endorse one of the three Albany mayoral candidates in the Democratic primary? The answer is almost certainly no, but it sure would shake up the race if he did.

In my recent column on the many problems with the governor's "free-tuition" plan, I said Andrew Cuomo's rhetoric rarely matches reality. He provided yet another example last week when he claimed the upstate New York economy is "roaring back to life."

What planet is this guy living on?

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Actually, Cuomo must see the statistics — the ones showing upstate population declines and anemic job growth. But as the governor prepares his 2020 presidential run, he's spewing more and more "alternative facts."

I had a nice time meeting and talking with the good folks of the Twin Bridges Rotary Club on Thursday. It was my first Rotary gathering, and I came away impressed by the charity-minded group.

If you want to get an argument going, pose the question asked recently by the website All Over Albany: Is it OK to drop a bag of dog poop in a neighbor's garbage can?

My take: Absolutely not, unless it's garbage day and the can will be emptied before it returns to the house.

Here's a much more serious question: What's the best response to a panhandler? Here's how Pope Francis recently answered: "Help is always right," he said, adding that charity should be done with respect and compassion because "tossing money and not looking in (their) eyes is not a Christian" way of behaving.

That might not be the most practical advice, but its compassionate simplicity is beautiful.

One of the surprises of the recently passed state budget is that union dues are now deductible on state income taxes. E.J. McMahon of the Empire Center notes that since most union members don't itemize, it's a gift to those who are relatively well paid.

The average annual tax savings will come to $67, McMahon says on the NY Torch blog. "Think of it as dinner and a movie, on the taxpayers' dime, flowing principally to some of America's best paid public employees," he wrote. "Not incidentally, it's also an indirect subsidy for the state's most politically powerful unions."

You don't have to be Machiavelli to suspect that the deduction is really about the governor mending fences with unions ahead of that 2020 presidential campaign.

There's been considerable talk lately about housing affordability in Albany, to which I'll pose this question: Don't the 900 vacant buildings in the city show that rents aren't yet high enough to get people to fix them up?

Note to Chelsea Clinton and Donald Trump Jr.: Being the child of a former or current president does not in any way qualify you for public office.

The UAlbany plan to house a new College of Engineering and Applied Science at the old Albany High School is undoubtedly good for the city, but it will make it much more difficult for pizza lovers to get a table at Sovrana on nearby Lake Avenue. And really, shouldn't that be the primary concern?

The developers behind the planned movie theater complex at One Monument Square in Troy recently unveiled renderings of the project, and much of the initial reaction was not positive. I'd agree that the design could use tweaking.

"Rue," the rooster that has taken up residence along Parkwood Avenue in Albany, is one tough bird. Not only did he make it through the winter, but he's evaded attempts by the Catskill Animal Sanctuary to capture him.

Have a wonderful and blessed Passover and Easter. Even for the nonreligious, the holidays can be a reminder, like spring itself, of rebirth, liberation and the enduring power of life.